juicy goodness.

I seemed to have missed the farmers market this past weekend and I am craving fresh fruit. May have to take a break from paperwork to run to the local market and stock up. Last summer my morning cereal consisted of 1 part cereal to 3 parts blueberries/raspberries. It was a glorious start to the day, but I may need to amp it up this summer. I would love to find a lovely new recipe for summer fruit...any suggestions?

bring to a boil.

I wish I could cook quinoa as delicately and beautifully 

as Sarah Britton of My New Roots can.

Teach me your ways.

just a dash and a pinch.

Salt and pepper shakers. So under appreciated, yet such a lovely addition to any table. Especially when they are not your run of the mill shakers. (haha get it...mill...pepper mill. I know, I'm clever)

Personal DIY favorite...

Nesting doll salt and pepper shakers via design*sponge

pretty pictures.

PINTEREST.

I love you.

check out heirloom on pinterest.

kitch.

Oh dear. I'm in heaven. My dream kitchen is already stocked full of everything Herriott Grace. Everything. As usual my wallet will hate me but my apartment will much appreciate. 

oh, and all of my cakes will look like this.

 Absolutely love the feather kitchen linen and pedestal. 

Perfect for wine and cheese parties.

       

Herriot Grace.

pb + ch.

I don't know about you, but I love snow. Like a fat kid loves cake, thats how much I LOVE it. When I heard the rumors of snow for this week in Portland, I almost jumped up and down. I promptly went online recipe oogling and found this little delight. I need to get as much "winter" in my meals this week as possible (does that make sense?).
Check it. 

Peanut Butter Hot Chocolate. (Your welcome.) 

1/4 cup sugar or honey

1/4 cup cocoa

1/4 cup water

3 cups 2% or whole milk

2-4 tbsp. creamy peanut butter

3 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped (Lindt 70% cocoa is great)

In a saucepan, stir together the sugar and cocoa to get rid of lumps; stir in the water until smooth, then whisk in the milk over medium-high heat. Heat until steaming. Remove the pan from the heat and add the peanut butter and chocolate. Let it sit for a few seconds, then blend it with a hand-held immersion blender. Or for individual cups, divide the chocolate among the cups and pour the warm milk over top. Whiz with one of those little frothers to make it very smooth and foamy.

 source.

eat this.

Salmon + Peppers With Caper Vinaigrette

Serves 4. 

Ingredients

• 1 cup long grain white rice
• 2 small red bell peppers, quartered
• 1 fennel bulb, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• kosher salt and black pepper
• 1 piece skinless salmon fillet (1 1/4 pounds)
• 1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 1 tablespoon capers, chopped
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 
  
• Directions
• 1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Cook the rice according to the package directions.
• 2. Meanwhile, in a large roasting pan, toss the bell peppers, fennel, 1 tablespoon oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Roast for 5 minutes.
• 3. Season the salmon with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Nestle among the vegetables. 
• 4. Roast until the salmon is opaque throughout and the vegetables are just tender, 14 to 16 minutes. 
• 5. In a small bowl, combine the parsley, capers, vinegar, and remaining tablespoon oil. Drizzle over the salmon and rice and serve with the vegetables.
• 
  
• Enjoy!

delicious-ness.

This is not bragging, this is just the truth. I can bake like nobody's business. One of my all time baking favs for the holiday are my chewy molasses cookies. Here is my Christmas gift to you! Enjoy!

Molasses Cookies

Makes about 60 two-inch cookies (enough to share!)

Preheat oven to 375

- 3/4 cup butter, softened

- 3/4 cup lard or vegetable shortening

- 1 1/2 cup granulated sugar

- 2 eggs

- 1/2 cup unsulphured dark molasses

- 4 cups all-purpose flour

- 2 tsp baking soda

- 2 tsp ground cinnamon

- 2 tsp ground cloves

- 2 tsp ground ginger

- 3/4 cup coarse or granulated sugar for topping

In a large bowl, beat butter and lard until soft. Slowly add and beat in two cups of granulated sugar. Beat in the eggs and molasses.

In a second large bowl, sift flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and ginger; add to creamed mixture, mixing well. Dough will be soft.

Refrigerate for about one hour or until dough is firm.

Roll dough into two-inch balls, and then roll each in the coarse sugar. Place balls about three inches apart on a lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake about 10-12 minutes, or until lightly cracked on top. Watch them carefully towards the end of they cooking tim so they don't get burnt on the bottom. Cool slightly and remove to a wire rack and cool completely. 

gift giving.

So if I were to do all of my holiday shopping online, Etsy would be the place. 

Here are a few ideas for you...

for the cook. 

salt shaker + pepper mill set

For the world traveler.

vintage celluloid travel cases

for the book worm.

a clear glass ornament filled with strips of pages from Pride + Prejudice

for the lover of all things antique. (moi)

for the decorator.

ikat silk + cotton pillow cover

for the hypochondriac.

chunky knit cable hot water bottle cover

for the munchkin.

little moose/teething toy

design heaven.

I woke up to a lovely e-mail this morning, the Nov/Dec issue of Rue Magazine...oh dear. This online magazine has it all. Design, fashion, more design, DIY, recipes.....297 pages of gorgeousness to be exact. Its only 9 AM and I have already looked through it twice. 
I love the fact that it's green and it's free...but I'm not going to lie, I would love to have this on my coffee table. 

Rue Magazine

Stunning! Cannot wait until January! 

saucy.

I hate to admit it but I love canned cranberry sauce. I am usually that girl that (tries to) cook everything I possibly can from scratch (with the exception of the occasional mac 'n cheese and brownies....they are just better from a box). However when it comes to cranberry sauce, I make an exception. I remember growing up, every Thanksgiving my sister and I were always known for being the ones that wanted a large 'slice' of cranberry sauce and a large spoonful of olives (for olive fingers of course).

I haven't lost the passion for the cran can...until now. 
I recently came across this recipe for red wine cranberry sauce. yes ma'm. 

Red Wine Cranberry Sauce

Ingredients:
- 1 ⅓ cup sugar

- 1 ½ cup dry red wine

- 1 cinnamon stick (optional)
- 24 ounces package cranberries

- Zest of one lemon

Directions:
1. In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the sugar, wine and cinnamon and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sugar dissolves and the wine has reduced slightly, about 4 minutes.


2. Add the cranberries and the zest. Simmer until the cranberries soften and the sauce thickens, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from the heat; remove and discard the cinnamon. Set aside to cool for at least several minutes and up to several hours. Serve warm. (Do not refrigerate; the flavor is muted by the cold.)